Australia's Alex Carey's Brilliant Ton Helps The Baggy Greens Bounce Back From An Early England Ashes Onslaught.
In the wake of the frenzy of the Perth Test as well as Brisbane's pink-ball palooza, an outbreak of familiar style regarding Test cricket broke out on the turf of Adelaide Oval. For the delighted locals, it was one to enjoy, as homegrown talent the wicketkeeper-batsman produced a magnificent hundred on his home venue as Australia Australia edge the first day's play.
However, England, 2-0 down and still fighting in the series, could be too downbeat. Skipper Ben Stokes lost out on what appeared an ominous toss and, despite being not perfect, his bowlers kept plugging away under scorching heat. At stumps, Australia were 326 for eight off 83 overs bowled – runs on the board but surely below their ambitions when Pat Cummins got the toss first thing.
The Pace of Archer Leads England's Fightback.
The standout among England proved to be speedster Jofra Archer. Figures of three for 29 off his 16 overs constituted a powerful response against the criticism that came his way. On this day he visibly spearheaded the attack, averaging around 88mph (142kph) with the speed gun and offering Stokes a combination of control and clear threat. It was only towards the very end of the day – during a single over using the second new ball – did he look a bit jaded.
Having dismissed Jake Weatherald first thing, Archer's initial over post-lunch accounted for Marnus Labuschagne and Cameron Green within just three balls. Green's golden duck was a stark reminder that cricket can bring even a celebrated player back down to earth, his weak chip to the mid-wicket fielder arriving barely a day following securing a massive multi-million dollar contract in the IPL.
The Keeper's Priceless Innings Rescues The Ship.
Alex Carey's performance, however, was simply priceless, peaking around 4.48pm when he elegantly drove Ben Stokes through cover for three and the Adelaide faithful to rise in a huge roar. Fresh from that masterful display with the gloves at the Gabba, his counterattacking 106 from 143 balls made sure that a mid-innings stumble of 94/4 failed to develop into a full-blown collapse. At 34, Carey is a genuinely cricketer nowadays.
The Australian batting lineup did leave a few potential runs out there, though. Absent was that pronounced bounce from the first two Tests and in its place only a fraction of seam movement if a good length was hit.
The pitch also offered some turn to Will Jacks, even if his control was that of a part-timer – resulting in figures of 2/105 from 20 overs – and the balls he did get to turn sharply will give hope to Nathan Lyon.
Emotional Backdrop and Late Team Change.
This was always going to be an emotional day for the host nation, arriving so shortly after the horrific tragic incident at Bondi. A minute's silence observed before the first ball was immaculately held, followed by folk singer a rendition delivering an emotional rendition of 'True Blue'.
By this stage, Australia were also forced into an alteration to their announced starting eleven. Steve Smith pulled out due to dizziness along with sickness first thing – seemingly recurrence of a vertigo issue that has periodically troubled the star batter ever since being felled by a Jofra Archer bouncer at Lord's six years ago.
His place was taken by Usman Khawaja, just 24 hours after it was speculated his international career could be over. Until the wicketkeeper's arrival, the left-hander had expertly held the innings steady, walking out at 33/2 before crafting a fine 82 off 126 deliveries a day out before his 39th birthday. Partnerships of 61 with Labuschagne and 91 with Carey proved significant.
The Tourist's Mixed Bag Continues.
Aside from Archer's efforts, and despite the energy-sapping conditions, this was yet another disappointing outing from England’s attack. Brydon Carse somewhat rolled over his inconsistent form from the series, picking up two for 70 off 13 overs, and the recalled Josh Tongue claimed one for 63 from 15 overs.
The Durham bowler looked erratic when handed sharing the new cherry early on, no-balling on five occasions yet dismissing Travis Head for 10 courtesy of a spectacular one-handed catch from Zak Crawley in the covers. This moment summed up the day's play for both sides: brilliance mixed with some error-prone play.
